


Gospel for the Fallen Ones

by styleswanderlust (jetpacklwt)



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: 1Dystopian, Alternate Universe, Everyone's aged up a few years, Gen, Violence but nothing graphic, i'll probably add more people and tags as i keep writing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-12-23
Updated: 2014-02-01
Packaged: 2018-01-05 17:04:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 18,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1096399
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jetpacklwt/pseuds/styleswanderlust
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Inspired by geekboyzayn's 1Dystopian AU.</p><p>One Direction are the leaders of a rebel movement against a totalitarian government in New London, years after the devastating end of World War III that left the planet in shambles.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Shoot Me Down

**Author's Note:**

> I started writing because I was inspired by Roo's [1Dystopian](http://geekboyzayn.tumblr.com/tagged/1Dystopian) tag, so you should definitely go through that tag if you've got a bit of time. I didn't stick to her timeline, per se, but I'm hoping I've done the AU some justice. I meant for this to not be a multi-chapter fic, but it shouldn't take me too long to finish because I've got so much muse and so much free time once Christmas is done and past. Anyways, I'll stop rambling and feel free to drop by my [tumblr](http://styleswanderlust.tumblr.com) if you've got any questions/concerns (or you know, leave them in the comments, whatever tickles your fancy). Oh, and this is currently unbeta'd, so any mistakes are mine (though I hope there aren't any since I've been poring over this for days).
> 
> As with everything, I don't own anything except the dialogue and some plot points.

It was dark. Of course it was dark; it was always dark when he moved around the city. Fuse had called him _Ghost_ for a reason, and part of that was because he enjoyed the dark, moved around it easier than he did in the daylight. His footsteps light – if this had been another life, maybe he would have been a dancer – and his breathing barely an audible whisper in the silence of the night, he reached the fire escape he needed. No one used it anymore, not in this abandoned building, but it was good for getting higher. Higher was good because then it meant you could see more, be seen less, and that was how he liked it.

“Ghosty-boy, you in position yet?” he heard Bones’ thick Irish accent in his ear through the static-y comm unit. It was old-school, probably as old-school as anyone was still able to work in this day and age, but it was untraceable. The government didn’t have a lock on it and that was what mattered.

“Count to six for me, Bonesy,” he replied teasingly as he jumped on the lid of one of the large garbage bins and onto what was left of the fire escape. “I’m going to kill Bambi for breaking the ladder off this fire escape,” he muttered for what was probably the hundredth time _since_ Bambi had broken the ladder three weeks ago.

“I said I was sorry!” the boy’s voice hissed into the comm unit and Ghost smiled behind his skull bandana as Bones bit back a laugh into the unit. Ghost moved quickly towards the rooftop, shaking his head as Bones teased Bambi about how clumsy he was.

“Ghost, are you in position?” Fuse’s voice was firm and serious through the static. The sound made the rest go quiet and Ghost hummed in agreement as he perched himself on top of the roof of the tallest building still standing. Dozens of buildings from what the group liked to call Old London had collapsed or been torn down since the new era, but this was probably one of Ghost’s favourite places to go, even when he wasn’t doing something for the Movement.

“In position,” he said simply as he shifted, grabbing hold of the ledge and looking around. He pulled his binoculars from around his neck, careful not to tangle it in the arrows taking home in his quiver. It was such a cliché, that the guy on the roof would have long-range weapons, but it worked as a strategy. Among the arrows, he also had his favourite sniper rifle, a crossbow, and a dart gun. His Team Zap logo was wrapped around the side of his quiver, spray painted with a faded gray to go with his nickname.

“What do you see?” Fuse asked into the comm and Ghost could almost see him pacing in his position – an abandoned building across the street – in his head. He heard a quiet click and Ghost could only imagine Fuse using his lighter to calm himself down. All members of Team Zap had them – a bright orange lighter with the logo on it in black, drawn courtesy of Ghost himself – and if there’s one thing they never left home without, it was that.

“They’re in sight, ETA two minutes,” he muttered into the unit, his eyes focusing on the armoured trucks that are headed towards where Bones is set up. Despite Fuse being the pyromaniac of the group, Bones was the guy who enjoyed seeing things blow up, enjoyed watching the colours light up the sky, and he was fantastic at his job, a genius really. He could light up the night sky with a few cases of bullets _and_ strike fear into the government’s heart, all with ten minutes of planning. It was almost poetic, if the kid wasn't so fucking crazy.

Their target was supposedly a simple enough delivery according to the reports that Bows had managed to pull from the system. They never would have worried about this delivery if it had been delivered during the day – if, being the key word. For some reason, however, it was being delivered at night, under the cloak of darkness, and that would never do for Team Zap, not when they were sure it held something the people could probably use. It’s the only reason the government would sneak products from their biggest trade post to Centric so late. It meant they didn’t want anyone lower than their highest bidders to have the goods, and that was what made it important to Team Zap.

“Go,” he heard himself mutter as the truck hit the right spot on the road that Bones and Jericho booby trapped. He saw the flash of blond just before the explosions began. They started small – just enough to scare the guards and get their attention – and slowly got bigger and louder. The next thing Ghost knew, he was seeing bright orange flames flickering around the trucks and fireworks exploding into the sky.

The guards were on alert now, if anything, because the fireworks were Bones’ signature move to let people know that Team Zap was about to participate in something wholly illegal and would probably end in injuries and an uncontrollable fire. It meant their five worst nightmares were watching them, roaming the streets and hidden in the shadows – for a little while longer anyways. Ghost had a small, slightly sadistic smile on as he readied his sniper rifle – the box had said AS-50, but those words meant nothing to him; it’s old school, the government didn’t have control over it, and it was definitely Ghost’s favourite – and as soon as he caught sight of the first guard, he aimed and shot, watching as the guard crumpled in pain from the hit on his leg.

“All right, Bambi, you got my team?” Fuse’s voice over the radio was strategic; it’s all business for him now and Ghost barely heard the affirmative from the youngest member of Team Zap before he saw some members of Fuse’s Attack Team follow Bambi out of the abandoned building Ghost was perched on and Fuse was leading his own group out of the other side of the street. The guards were armed and the trucks were armoured, yes, but they had yet to figure out how to stop Fuse’s Attack Team when they put their mind to it, and Ghost could only watch in amusement – and letting loose the occasional bullet to keep a guard from hurting one of their members – as the chaos ensued.

“Looks like it’s just meds, but there’s plenty of it, Fuse,” Jericho’s voice said into the comm unit and Ghost turned his attention to the first armoured truck to find the helmet Jericho always wore at the start of a line of the Collection Team to get the goods from the armoured truck to their truck.

“What the fuck do they need meds for? They haven’t got anything wrong with their lives!” he heard Fuse call out almost hysterically and Ghost realized Fuse had joined in on the fun, as evidenced by the sudden burst of flames that had showed up on the side of the road.

“Jericho, help Bones out, on your three,” Ghost said into the comm unit quickly as he noticed Bones, despite holding more energy than one person could logically hold, being outnumbered by a few guards. They always left the Movement members alone in favour of Team Zap – they were the leaders, after all, it made sense – which was probably one of the reasons why they all insisted on being on the field whenever they could.

It took barely a second for Jericho to grab a Defence & Detainment member and have him take his place in line before he was grabbing one of the guards, throwing him against the wall and then using another guard to knock him down. Ghost saw a brief interaction between Bones and Jericho before Bones held his hand up in a high five. Jericho reciprocated right before he smashed a guard’s kneecap with his steel bat – his favourite weapon. Ghost watched from his perch, keeping his rifle aimed and ready in case anyone needed back up.

It was less than two minutes later when Ghost realized there weren’t any more Centric guards out and about and it was mostly Collection and Demolitions & Transport members who were out and about, Fuse’s Attack Team slowly dissipating as they helped the D&T team carry injured members to the truck that would take them to the nearest Health & Hospitality Centre. _Well damn_ , he thought as he realized that they’d probably moved faster than they had before.

“Bambi?” Fuse’s voice sounded through the comm unit and Ghost pulled away from watching Bones and Jericho to look for the lanky boy in the crowds.

“Just got the guards tied up. Ready for us, Jericho?” was Bambi’s reply into the unit and Ghost could almost hear the relieved sigh from Fuse. Although Fuse wouldn’t admit it, he worried about Bambi more than he did the others. Maybe it was because he was younger or maybe it was something else, but Fuse did care – that much Bones and Ghost could assure the younger boy; he just liked to show it by teasing him.

“Yes, sir,” Jericho’s voice was deep in the comm unit as he grunted and pulled the last box of meds from the first armoured truck onto the line of transport members.

Bambi and a handful D&D Team members came out of one of the abandoned buildings, carrying or ushering guards to the armoured trucks. The guards were all tied together in a line with various injuries – one was limping from where Ghost had shot his leg and another had an ice pack from where Jericho had hit him over the head with the base of his bat. Of course he had an ice pack; despite the group being called _Defence & Detainment_, Bambi occasionally used it as a chance to help the people they were ambushing. Ghost never quite understood why, but Fuse didn’t stop him after the first time Bambi had done it, so he supposed there was some sort of agreement reached.

Four of the guards were wearing laymen’s clothes, though, and Ghost looked back at the abandoned building they had come from to see two of Bones’ D&T team and two of Jericho’s D&D team dressed as guards before they took their seats as drivers in the armoured trucks.

That was the thing about Team Zap, Ghost figured,­ even if they were trying to overthrow the government, mass chaos wasn’t really the goal.

\- - -

The One Direction Movement, or the Movement as everyone called it, had started about five years prior, when Fuse, at nineteen, saw a family get beaten and have their home ripped apart simply because they had publicly disagreed with something the government had said. After that, it was only a matter of time before Fuse had recruited his best friends, Bones and Ghost, to help start the Movement, a “rebellion for the ages” he’d called it. They formed “Team Zap,” a name dubbed on them by Bones, who was fascinated with Ghost’s “Zap” tattoo on his right arm; with no protest from Fuse, it became the team’s official name. It was a few weeks later that Jericho joined the team after he saved Bones from himself by dragging him away before a firework went off in his face. A few months later, Bambi joined their ranks when he managed to be at the right place at the right time with just the right words to get Fuse and Bones out of trouble. Although they welcomed him easily into the Movement, it was a few weeks later that Fuse finally named him a proper member of Team Zap.

At the current time, five years after they started, the Movement has thousands of members in the slums and Zone B, and even a dozen or so in Centric, and although one would think it would be an ineffective rebellion due to the large numbers, it has gotten to the point where the government is properly scared of them. Fuse has even had offers of monetary value if they will stop fighting the government. Of course, they always refuse because monetary rewards won’t stop the government, but it sufficed in showing them that the government was more scared than they let on. The Movement has small factions all over the city, and some of the Infiltration Team has even admitted that there are whispers of the Movement growing in the other countries as well, and they all follow the same policies as the original Movement: don’t kill unless you absolutely must, don’t hurt civilians, and don’t discriminate against anyone who wants to join.

Despite the large numbers of the Movement, one thing that is made clear to everyone who takes part in it is that they are all under Team Zap’s command. The leaders of factions are trained under Team Zap’s trainer and they are expected to train the members of their factions the proper way, so that if Team Zap needs back ups for a mission, they’ll be ready to step in with minimal instruction necessary. Although some argue that this makes Team Zap just as much of a totalitarian system as the government, everyone agrees that the fact that there are five of them – five different personalities that balance each other out – keeps them from being as heartless and cold as the government itself.

Team Zap’s unofficial leader and “founder” of the Movement was Fuse, a man of twenty-four with feathery brown hair and bright blue eyes. He was a pyromaniac, the sort that would use fire to fight, well, anything – from bugs to water, if it could be used to attack him, he would use fire to fight it. He was the one who came up with the idea that all five members have a bright orange lighter on their person at all times, mostly because of his policy that “when in doubt, burn a bitch,” which they all figured made sense as a policy, considering they had plenty to risk from being found out by the government because of the Movement. Along with being the leader of the Movement _and_ their core strategist, he was in charge of the Movement’s Attack Team, the team that was always first line of attack and ambush. They were trained specifically to “distract and destroy,” so that the Collection Team could swoop in and grab what they needed to. As a civilian, however, he was Louis Tomlinson, twenty-four year old theatre actor at the local community theatre. The theatre was used to put on plays for Centric citizens and it was one of the few, discreet ways that Team Zap was ever able to get into high-profile events.

His second-in-command was Bones – short for Skin and Bones, which is what Fuse had called him all through their childhood. He was practically an orphan; his parents were too busy working and trying to get food on the table to actually take care of him. His brown hair was lifeless, his blue eyes dull, and he was so skinny that Fuse had taken him under his wing, turned into the big brother he never had, and took care of him. Since then, Bones dyed his hair blond, his blue eyes are alight with excitement about almost any topic he comes across, and he could eat more than anyone Fuse had ever met. Bones was in charge of the Demolitions & Transport Team, which did exactly what it sounded like. He usually dealt with the fireworks and bombs by himself, but occasionally needed help with making sure things went off when and where they needed to. The Transport portion of his team was made up of the Movement’s getaway trucks (and the occasional plane), usually the ones still in the car or planning the escape route as they entered a building. As a civilian, Bones was Niall Horan, a twenty-three year old Irish man with a love for music and the ability to make the younger kids he worked with smile.

Ghost became the third member of Team Zap after he walked by Bones trying to blow up a glass bottle with the gun powder from three bullets on his way to an art exhibit. After he and Bones had a lengthy discussion on _how_ he could manage that and how the government was screwing everyone over, Bones introduced him to Fuse and the three boys got on well enough that Fuse named him Ghost and welcomed him to Team Zap. He was the dark and edgy contrast to the cheerful (and usually harmless) mischief that Fuse and Bones embodied. He was like the quiet voice in the back of their heads that kept their ideas grounded but also encouraged them to get as crazy as possible, which translated well when the Movement started becoming bigger than any of them expected. He was their eye in the sky, the man who saw everything and was never seen. It was useful when it came to keeping an eye on large crowds. Ghost was in charge of the Surveillance Team, which surprised no one when Fuse was handing out assignments. When he wasn’t Ghost, however, he was Zayn Malik, a raven-haired, hazel-eyed, early twenty-something artist whose art was commissioned by the richest in the Centric to decorate their walls. He lived just outside of Centric, the pearly white walls of the city the view outside of his window. His living space was modest, though, claiming that he put all his money in a worthy investment whenever clients asked him about it. All his money, of course, went towards the One Direction Movement, but that was _his_ best kept secret.

While the other three boys were all assets to the Movement in their own way, every revolution needs some brawn, the strength behind the change they want to make. For Team Zap, Jericho was that strength, but in more ways than one. He was calm, collected, and compassionate. For the others, he was like a support group in the form of one man, always willing to listen and give you advice to the best of his abilities. He was also the muscle behind their operations; in charge of Defence & Detainment, he and his team were first in line when they were being attacked. Sacrifice was the biggest thing one had to learn and be willing to do when they joined D&D. Along with being in charge of D&D, Jericho is one of the leaders in charge of Collection; he and Bambi have a team together whose sole purpose is to collect the goods that they’re trying to get out of the government’s hands. Outside of the Movement, Jericho was Liam Payne, a fireman with short, brown hair and caring brown eyes, whose biggest problem in Centric was usually a piece of technology that overheated. In the other inhabited areas of New London, however, he was everywhere – even if it was just to lend a helping hand before being handed a pie and sent on his way. Sweet, wholesome Liam Payne was never the face they expected to find as a part of the Movement, and if he hadn’t been looking in the right direction in time to see Bones about to set himself on fire, he wouldn’t ever have been part of the movement.

Bambi was the group’s charmer. His codename was originally given to him by Fuse to piss him off for being so tall, gangly, and uncoordinated, it had grown on him enough that he didn’t mind it anymore. He was the kid that didn’t belong on this side of the tracks, too sweet and innocent and naïve to be a part of a rebellion against a government that, for all intents and purposes, gave him everything on a silver platter, but he _was_. Bambi was in charge of the Infiltration Team, the small team of people whose only job was really to have Centric citizenship and help the Movement get inside those walls. They’re the ones who give off the image that they support the government and all its power, when in reality they’re figuring out how to make it easier for the Movement to break in. Outside of the Movement, however, Bambi was simply Harry Styles, a friendly boy with curly brown hair and bright green eyes. He is the twenty-two year old son of very important people in the Centric – his stepfather, Robin Twist, was a member of the government’s medicinal research team while his mother Anne Cox-Twist was one of the most well-known socialites and is famous for her fabulous Christmas and New Year’s Eve parties. Surprisingly enough, few have caught onto the fact that parties where Harry Styles RSVPs a “plus one,” there’s usually some Movement shenanigans to go along with it, and those that have are now members of the Movement.

**\- - -**

Once the armoured trucks were on their way back to Centric with Movement members at the helm and the rest of the members were headed home with promises of Distribution in the next week, the five boys converged around the truck. Bones whistled as he slipped into the driver’s seat, the question non-existent as the others started towards the back. The truck was black and nondescript – there were dozens down one street alone – so it was easy enough to blend in and keep the government from finding them. The only marking it had was the small Zap logo on the dashboard that was designed to look like a firework, but that was only because Bones decided his truck needed the logo too – “Ghost’s got his arrow bag-thing, Jericho’s got his helmet, Bambi has his tattoo, and Fuse has his jacket. I want the logo on _my_ thing!” and considering his “thing” was driving and making things explode, well, it only made sense to put it on the truck.­ Jericho climbed into the front seat beside Bones – just like their teams, they went hand in hand. In case they ran into any problems on the way to headquarters, they’d be able to either run as fast as they could, or at least had their first line of defence against the ambush.

Despite the fact that they were technically in the safety of their truck, the five of them stayed on alert. They had been attacked once and tailed another time after that before, and so they started taking extra precaution of looking out for government agents trying to stop the Movement. Finally, however, they were able to make it to Headquarters without a problem. The five boys of Team Zap climbed out of the truck, shedding the personas they wore as the leaders of the One Direction Movement to be their “civilian” selves, joining the other leaders of the Movement in their underground hideout.

\- - -

The Movement’s Headquarters was, and always had been, an abandoned warehouse with half of it underground. No one knows what it was once used for or even why half of it was underground, but when Fuse had first found it, he’d gotten so excited, he nearly squealed (although he never tells anyone that; he’s got a reputation to uphold, you know). He wasted no time in telling Bones and Ghost about it, however, and started explaining just how everything was going to be placed.

“A couch here, for when we need to relax. And we should have, like, a kitchen, cause we’ll probably spend nights here too, plotting and scheming. There’s a downstairs too! So we could make, like bunks and shit. I don’t know what the fuck used to be here, but there’s like a dozen rooms two levels down. It’s the bloody best warehouse I’ve ever seen,” Fuse had rambled as he waved his arms around the empty warehouse.

“You and what money exactly?” Ghost had asked teasingly as he ran his fingers over the bare walls. There was a bit of graffiti here and there, but in his head, he was already painting the walls in his head.

“We’ll figure it out. I just think it’ll be great,” Fuse continued, grinning at Bones as he awaited his reply.

“How big do we plan on having this rebellion of yours, mate?” Bones asked with a cheerful laugh on the tip of his tongue.

“It’ll be a rebellion for the ages, Bones! It’ll go down in history books!”

Since then, the warehouse had only been expanded. The underground portion had seen more construction in the past five years than Centric has in the previous ten. It had taken a lot of work, a lot of time, and a lot of donations, but eventually, the warehouse was secure and had everything the Movement’s leaders needed.

The top floor, the one most exposed to the world, was basically the garage. It had spaces for trucks to park and a ramp, for when they had deliveries that had to be brought to the Sorting Centre. The next floor below was far busier than the other floors – it had the Sorting Centre, where their goods were sorted once they delivered them to Headquarters, the kitchen, the training and exercise room, and the clinic, where injured leaders were sent to recuperate. The floor below that was mostly made up of bunks. Five were permanently assigned to Team Zap – they liked to give the illusion that they didn’t all fall asleep on Fuse’s couch when they slept in Headquarters, while the others were split between the other leaders both to sleep in and for various uses, and three were used as “guest” bunks, for when they had faction leaders staying at the warehouse. Only faction leaders and the leaders of the Movement knew the exact location of Headquarters. Fake coordinates were scattered in hints, depending on the location, and those coordinates led to other warehouses made to look like Headquarters on the outside, but had booby traps set by Bones to keep outsiders from exploring any deeper or from anyone being able to step in without attracting a _lot_ of attention. Although it wasn’t the most glamorous living space, it was like their home away from home, and that was enough for them.

\- - -

 “You know, the five of you might be the _leaders_ , but you don’t have to be the only ones guarding such precious cargo from point A to point B. You’re going to get attacked and then we’ll lose the five of you all at the same time and then where will the movement be?” was the first thing they heard as they climbed out of the truck. The protest came from a girl with silver hair and bright blue eyes in a pair of black skinny jeans, combat boots, an army jacket that was a little too big on her, and a pair of work gloves. More commonly known as Perrie Edwards by the citizens of New London, she was famous for her crazy hair colour changes, something her mother seriously hoped was just a “phase” she would grow out of soon. She was a member of the Centric society, after all, so crazy hair colours were far from advocated. Perrie had joined the Movement a few months after Harry had been recruited, her nickname changing almost as often as her hair. As a leader of the Distribution Team, it was her job to make sure the goods they’d recently acquired made it to the people who truly needed it. Supply and demand was a delicate balance and she was one of the few in charge of making sure it tipped in their favour.

Zayn laughed as he wrapped an arm around the silver-haired girl’s shoulders. “Hey, babe,” he said as he pulled his bandana off from around his neck and shoved it in his pocket, placing a quick kiss on her cheek. Perrie sighed, wrapping her arms around his middle for a hug and smiling as she pulled away. “Or am I still supposed to call you Skittles since you’ve got your work gloves on?” he asked teasingly, squeezing her waist a little and gesturing at the thick gloves on her hands. It was one of the running jokes that when you were still doing Movement tasks, you should be called by your codename, but the only time it was really important was out in public.

She laughed humourlessly as she pulled away from the hug and rolled her eyes. She caught sight of Louis as he climbed out of the back of the truck, shrugging off his jean jacket and pulling the beanie off his hair, fluffing it out as Perrie spoke. “Fuck you, Tomlinson. I hate you for that name, did you know that?” she said angrily, glaring at Louis.

He only laughed as he dropped his jean jacket on the back of one of the chairs. “Not my fault your hair has been all the colours of the rainbow,” he said teasingly, giving Perrie his cheeriest smile as Niall dropped out of the driver’s seat, pulling his goggles off from around his neck and wrapped the elastic strap around his wrist.

“Fuck, Pez, you should’ve seen the display! It was _beautiful_ , babe,” he said excitedly, bouncing on the balls of his feet as he leaned in to kiss her cheek too before running a hand through his hair. “Know if they’ve got food on?” he asked, rubbing at his stomach as he took a deep breath, walking past everyone as he called out towards the kitchen.

“You know, I packed him snacks for this trip. And he’s already eaten it all,” Liam said in disbelief as he pulled his helmet off his head, fluffing out his hair where it was squashed flat. “Hey, Pez,” he said with a friendly smile just as a tall brunette wearing a pair of dark green leggings, a loose black sweater, and a pair of knee-high boots sauntered into the garage area carrying a Thermos and four mugs.

“Hey, boys,” Eleanor Calder said cheerfully as she placed the four mugs on the table and started unscrewing the cap of the Thermos. Like Perrie and Harry, Eleanor was a daughter of the Centric society – her father was in charge of a lot of the government’s financial assets while her mother was a fashion designer – and was recruited at the same time as Perrie, considering both girls had forced Harry to explain why his “plus one” always disappeared after the Movement caused havoc at society parties. Thankfully, he knew they were aware how unfair the government was to the less fortunate and that they would be more than happy to help when he took the risk and told them about the Movement. Eleanor was the second leader of the Distribution Team, although she was known to dabble in Health & Hospitality, the team in charge of making sure members of the Movement were being taken care of to the best of their abilities and that anyone seeking refuge could find it. Her Louis-appointed codename had been Legs, for the mere fact that her legs looked like they went on for miles in pretty much anything she wore. “I ran into Niall bugging Gem in the kitchen, so I figured I’d bring you some hot chocolate. Lou normally would, but she figured they needed her at H&H in Zone B,” she explained as she poured the contents of the Thermos into four separate mugs.

“You’re an angel, El,” Louis said happily, grabbing a mug and placing his hands around it and sighing contently.

“If you’d just wear gloves like I told you to,” Harry said matter-of-factly to Louis as he grabbed his own mug, lightly nudging the older boy’s hip with his own.

“Gloves don’t go with the outfit, Hazza, I’ve told you this,” Louis replied, sticking his tongue out at him.

“Chances I can be Angel instead of Legs?” Eleanor asked jokingly as she handed Zayn and Liam their mugs before pulling herself up onto a table top, the tips of her boots brushing the floor as her legs swung.

“When hell freezes over,” Louis answered simply as he took a sip of his hot chocolate.

“Well, my mum almost found out about my tattoo, so that could be soon,” Liam said casually as he sipped his hot chocolate.

“Would she even understand what it’s for?” Perrie asked as she pulled herself up onto the table beside Eleanor.

“Probably not, but she still wouldn’t like it,” Liam said, shrugging.

“Your problem, Li, is that at twenty-three, you should really stop giving a fuck what your mum thinks,” Louis said matter-of-factly, as if his word was law and, in Headquarters, it sort of was. The problem was that matters at home, like Liam and his mum’s relationship, weren’t a part of things that Louis had jurisdiction over. Not to mention, Louis was just as much of a mama’s boy as Liam, despite his tough-and-gritty attitude.

“Hey, leave him alone, Lou,” Harry said, nudging Louis with his foot as he moved to sit down on one of the shelves that held random trinkets they hadn’t found proper homes for yet. “He’s trying to be a good son, considering everything,” he added, giving Louis a pointed look and Louis squirmed a little before sighing.

“Sorry, Li,” he muttered as he looked down at his shoes. Although on anyone else, it would’ve seemed like a petulant, meaningless apology, Liam and Louis both knew just how much it really meant. Both of them had sisters that were currently serving time at Centric to make up for one family debt or another. It was part of the reason why the two of them had bonded quickly after Liam had joined the Movement.

“So, what’d you guys get for us?” Eleanor asked quietly after a few moments, and the boys were grateful for the reprieve from the depressing turn their conversation had taken. Harry leaped into action then, grinning as he tugged Eleanor and Perrie to the back of the truck, chatting animatedly about how he had taken one guard by surprise.

“I’ll grab Paul so he can help,” Liam said, gesturing towards the training facility, where Paul almost always was just as Zayn put his hot chocolate down and climbed into the back of the truck through the sunroof and Louis took a final sip of his hot chocolate before starting the line of transport for each crate. Soon enough, Liam came back with their Training Team manager, Paul, and they finished the line that took the crates from the truck to the tables in the Sorting Centre.

“How’s it, Boss Man?” Louis asked playfully as he jumped on Paul’s back, causing the older man to snort and shove him off his shoulders.

“Get to work, Tomlinson, so I can finish training your new recruits,” he said seriously, shaking his head as he took a box from Zayn inside.

“How’d Boom Box do, anyways?” Niall asked as he slipped into his place on the line between Zayn and Paul, a stick of beef jerky sticking out of his cheek.

“Jesy did pretty well this time around. They’re all ready to die for the cause, though we’ve still got a few squeamish ones as always. Leigh-Anne’s having a field day training them, though; she pulled out her old vinyl records again,” Paul replied, shrugging as he handed Louis the crate.

“Ah, old Boom Box and Vinyl, so predictable,” Louis said jokingly as he handed the crate over to Harry, who went over to place it under one of the tables, so as not to overwhelm it.

“I can’t believe they were planning on taking all of these back to Centric,” a voice said disbelievingly. Harry stood up and grinned, running over to the owner excitedly and hugging her tight. “Good to see you too, kid; Lou said there were a lot of injuries and I was worried you’d be one of them,” Gemma Styles said, a smile on her face as she wrapped her arms around her brother’s shoulders, laughing when he picked her up and spun her once. Gemma had been a part of the Movement months before Harry, having been recruited after she took on a role as an EMT to fulfil her desire to take care of people. She and Liam were working on the same scene when she made a comment about how abusive the government was. It was two weeks later that Louis and Liam had approached her about it, and months later, they accidentally recruited her little brother. She’s one of the leaders of the H&H Team, but spends a lot of time away from Headquarters to keep up with the number of injuries citizens of New London get from both the Movement and every day life.

“Bambi and Thumper, together again,” Louis said jokingly as he handed Harry another crate when they finally pulled apart from the hug.

“You’re an arse, Tomlinson,” Gemma replied, rolling her eyes as she opened one of the crates on the table and wrinkled her nose. “Cold and allergy relief; when was the last time you had any allergy problems, Haz?” she continued, rolling her eyes as she started emptying out the crate.

“Age ten, after my last anti-allergen shot,” he said, furrowing his eyebrows as she handed the box of pills to him. “Shots are way more expensive than these, though,” he added as Louis came up behind him.

“The important question is if this batch of goods is going to have what we need,” Louis said seriously, poking through the box some and sighing when he saw that it was all cold and allergy relief medication.

“Probably not, no,” Harry said sadly as Gemma looked over at the blue-eyed boy.

“You know it’s not just a cold, right?” she asked seriously, and Harry gave her a pointed look as Louis rolled his eyes.

“I _know_. I may not have graduated with honours from school – or at all, for that matter – but I do know how serious it is. I just – anything to make her feel better,” he said quietly, running a hand through his hair before he moved on to look at the next crate.

“Did you have to say something, Gem?” Harry asked in a whisper once Louis had moved on to help Eleanor with one of her crates. When he’d finished unloading the last of the crates, Paul gave everyone a quick goodbye before heading back to the training room, where they could hear the newest batch of their recruits being trained – to the music of some old school pop band that was probably salvaged from some abandoned building.

“I’m just saying, he can’t get his hopes up every time you raid medicinal cargo,” Gemma hissed back, shrugging as she started carrying some of the boxes to the bin that would be sent to the slaves in the Centric. Despite living in the Centric, the slaves didn’t get the same treatment as the citizens did, so they still needed help once in a while and the Movement was more than happy to provide it.

Harry sighed, running a hand through his curls as he finished sorting out the piles for the rest of the cold and allergy medicine.

“Do you ever think maybe what we need might be in the other truck?” Louis asked absently before Liam slammed a crate on the table, causing the whole room to jump and turn to the usually-mild-mannered man.

“We talked about this, Lou,” Liam said seriously, and Louis glared at him.

“I know we did, but I’m just saying, what if the government’s caught on?” Louis asked, running a hand through his hair as he sorted through a pile of pain relief medication.

“How would they have caught on when ninety percent of the Movement doesn’t even know what the fuck we’re doing?” Liam asked, raising an eyebrow at him. His tone was challenging and the atmosphere in the room had shifted to something tense. Louis walked up to Liam, his chest puffed out in an attempt to show that _he_ was in charge, and although his leadership was rarely questioned, his decisions and ideas occasionally were. It was something Louis normally took well, but in this particular situation, it was obvious that Louis was getting desperate – desperate enough to possibly do something reckless. Liam, for all his usual meekness and gentle-heartedness, didn’t back down, his back straight as he stared Louis down.

“Do you have a problem with how I’m running things?” Louis asked, his voice low but loud enough that you could hear the firmness in it.

“You know that’s not the case, Lou. I just think you’re being ridiculous and losing sight of how we’re supposed to be doing things and the actual _goal_ of the Movement,” Liam said, his tone calm and even, but the veins in his fist and arms could be seen from where he was obviously fighting the urge to get angry. He had been fantastic at boxing, Paul had told them so when he was training Liam, and that was why Louis had given him the assignment for D &D, because it’s what he was good at: defending himself and patiently waiting for the right time to strike.

“I haven’t lost sight of it. The government will still be there tomorrow and next week for us to fight, that much we can be sure of. She, on the other hand, is getting weaker with every passing day. Do you know for sure she’ll be here _next week_?” Louis’ tone is venomous and Liam’s breathing has become laboured. With barely a second’s hesitation, Zayn grabbed Liam’s arm, dragging him towards the training room and Harry has Louis’ shoulders underneath one arm, dragging him back to Louis’ bunk.

It’s not a new conversation, but it’s very rare that Liam snaps in front of the others. He usually reserves those for the Team Zap group meetings. Niall takes a deep breath as he watched the two pairs move to different parts of Headquarters before looking around the Sorting Centre.

“Three girls, one me, no need to rush in all at once,” Niall said teasingly, winking at the three girls in front of him. Perrie only cackles, shaking her head as she pulls her silver hair back in a ponytail and finishes sorting through her crate.

“Fucking hell, Horan, you’re worse than Harry,” Gemma replied, her tone exasperated as she turns back to her crate.

“Gem, don’t insult Niall. _No one_ has jokes worse than Harry,” Eleanor said absently as she finished placing vials of insulin in the container, causing the Irishman to cackle loudly. 


	2. The Fear of Falling Apart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I said the next chapter would be up within the week and, well, here it is! Hopefully you guys like it (: This chapter's also unbeta'd so please forgive any of my mistakes (if anything actually bothers you, feel free to tell me about it at my [tumblr](http://styleswanderlust.tumblr.com/ask) (or if you want to tell me anything, really, or bother me about the next chapter~). Anyways, I'll stop rambling. Enjoy!

“Lou,” Harry’s voice was quiet as he sat Louis down on the edge of his bed. Louis sighed, rubbing his face lightly as he let his elbows rest on his knees.

“I know, Haz, I know. I shouldn’t have snapped at him like that,” he muttered as he ran his hands through his hair. He gives Harry a sheepish smile as he looks at him, shrugging a little. “I just – I’m just so fucking _worried_ , and it feels like I’m the only one. I know I’m not – so don’t start that, but like … I get that we’ve got a mission and there’s a bigger picture, but like, how is it that we’ve got all this technology at our hands, in the government’s control, and we can’t solve one case?” he rambled, standing up and pacing as Harry took his spot on the bed. Without thinking, Louis pulled out his lighter, his thumb flicking the machinery easily to light the flame.

“Because it’s rare enough that the government isn’t trying hard enough,” Harry said quietly, shrugging a little. “I asked Robin about why some diseases were still incurable, and he said it’s because they aren’t trying,” he continued, knowing that the news won’t do anything to calm Louis’ nerves.

He was right, at least. Louis’ pacing stops and he just stares at Harry in disbelief. “Because they – _fuck_ ,” Louis muttered, running his free hand – the one not holding a lighter – through his hair as he dropped down on the edge of the bed beside Harry. “You think if it hit a Centric citizen, they’d give all the money in the system to find a cure?” he asked quietly, even though they both already know the answer.

“It’s different when it’s in the Centric,” they muttered at the same time, a sad sigh escaping them both as they think about the heavy, painful truth in that statement.

“Liam’s got a point, though; we can’t give up, Lou. Not on the original mission of the Movement and not on her. We just need to figure out how to make both happen,” Harry said seriously, turning on the bed so he was facing Louis. The older man only nodded in reply, turning his head slightly to smile at Harry.

“Yeah, I know, mate. We’ll figure something out,” he muttered, patting Harry’s knee lightly.

“We always do.”

\- - -

Zayn leaned against the back wall of the training room, watching the eyes of about a dozen new recruits who had been blindfolded and driven around aimlessly for three hours to get to Headquarters. To keep things a very big secret, recruits were expected to drive with Paul for three hours, blindfolded, and then sleep in the training room every night for the week and a half they were in training. Then, when that was done and Paul deemed them worthy of being a part of the Movement, they were blindfolded and driven around for another three hours before being dropped off in the middle of their designated living area. They were all optimistic about the future, hoping for an exciting adventure as a member of the rebellion. Zayn hoped they wouldn’t be disappointed.

Every single recruit was wide eyed and a little terrified, watching Liam attack the punching bag in the middle of the room with so much energy and fervour it looked like he could punch a hole through the bag. Paul was holding it steady for him, encouraging Liam to keep going. Liam only ever grunted in response, his eyes focused on the spot he’d worn out on the bag already, a faded red from the rest of the bag.

After Liam’s argument with Louis, it only made sense to Zayn to drag him back to the training room. It had taken Paul one look at Liam to know that something was up, so he’d stopped his training – something Leigh-Anne was quite upset about and Zayn made a mental note to pay her back in chocolates – and told the trainees to watch a pro at work before letting Liam go at it. Liam was always the sort to keep things inside until they practically exploded and he couldn’t control it anymore, so it was always best to have the pre-emptive strike of giving Liam a punching bag before it happened.

Considering how close it was today, Zayn figured a few minutes with the punching bag would make it easier for him to open up about what was bothering him. He was silent, twirling the cigarette in his hands over and under his knuckles as he waited for Liam to finish up. It took about seven minutes of consistent, rhythmic punching for Liam to finally cool down. He took a deep breath, stepping away from the punching bag and giving Paul a small, grateful smile before nodding sagely at him and then the trainees. Zayn only smiled as he held a water bottle out to Liam, droplets of water condensing on the outside as a cool relief for the younger male as he placed the side of the bottle to his forehead.

“Careful, you might give the female trainees a heart attack,” Zayn said teasingly as he started for the door, Liam following closely behind.

“If they hadn’t already suffered from one by watching you stand there, I think they’ll be okay,” Liam replied jokingly, nudging Zayn lightly with his shoulder.

Zayn made a face, letting out a low “ _ewwww_!” as if Liam’s sweat was the grossest thing he’d come in contact with. “How’re you feeling?” he asked as the two of them made their way to the kitchen.

“Better, thanks,” Liam said quietly, chugging all the contents of the water bottle Zayn had given him quickly before chucking it into the recycling bin as he went about making himself a sandwich.

“You want to talk about it, mate?” Zayn asked as he slipped into one of the chairs at the kitchen’s makeshift breakfast nook. It was a part of the “feminine touch” Perrie insisted on adding when she and Eleanor had first seen Headquarters. Gemma, who was usually in the kitchen if she wasn’t in the clinic, had breathed a grateful sigh, claiming any feminine touches she had previously suggested had always been vetoed by majority rules. At that point, gender ratios had been perfectly even, so Perrie, Eleanor, and Gemma had been able to bring in more comfortable, homey furniture. Although Louis had protested at first, they all knew he was actually quite happy with the homey touches, probably reminded of his mum’s home, though no one was brave enough to say it out loud.

“Not really?” Liam offered, shrugging as he started making himself a sandwich. “Think Bows has eaten yet?” he asked as he hesitated over the loaf of bread, as if he didn’t know if he wanted to make a second sandwich or not.

“Probably not; Leigh said she was in the training room yesterday, so she’s set on movement and social interaction for about two and a half days,” Zayn said jokingly, shrugging as he stood up to grab two water bottles from the fridge as Liam started making a second sandwich. “And you know, you can call her _Jade_ , right?” he asked, raising an eyebrow at him as he tossed the bottles at Liam, who caught them with ease and placed them on the counter beside the sandwiches.

“Yeah, I know,” Liam said simply as he scooped the two sandwiches up in one hand and the two bottles in another. “Are we good?”

“Just don’t give Louis a reason to burn you alive, yeah?” Zayn joked, a small smile on his face as Liam laughed.

“Don’t think I can make any promises, mate. He’s been on a shorter string than usual recently,” he offered, sighing. They were quiet for a second before Zayn spoke again.

“Think we’ve all been on shorter strings than usual. Even _Niall_ was looking somber yesterday.”

“She’s taking a lot out of us, huh?” Liam only sighed, rubbing at his forehead with the back of his hand.

“We’ll figure it out,” Zayn said encouragingly, a small smile on his face as he grabbed another water bottle. “C’mon, you go feed your girl, I need a nap, and we’ve got a stop to make,” he added teasingly as Liam laughed and shook his head as the two of them made their way down the stairs that led from the kitchen to the bunks.

\- - -

There was one room in the entire Headquarters that, as an almost unspoken rule by everyone, if they walked by in no particular rush, they were expected to stop in and say hi. It had started out as a bit of a joke, when they were all taking turns taking shifts to guard Headquarters, whoever was on duty would all pop in at the beginning and end of their shifts. No one knew if their absence would be noticed if they didn’t step in when the lights were out, but no one wanted to risk it either.

The only difference between the first year they’d done it and now was that it didn’t hold an almost morose atmosphere before. Not one that filled Louis with dread. He knew he wasn’t the only one that felt it, looking at the looped handwriting on the homemade sign in front of him – the only door with decoration for the sake of it, rather than just a nameplate to tell you what the room was for – and knowing that it was the labour of an entire hour of Eleanor’s time, using all the practice she’d ever had from her Centric education to make the “cutest sign for the cutest girl.” Everyone felt the awful feeling in their gut that this visit might be their last, but no one would ever voice it. It was too dangerous, too real if they did.

“Oh, hey, mates,” Niall muttered as he came down the stairs, pausing when he saw Louis and Harry standing there, staring at the door with furrowed brows. “Was about to take the shift from Gemma since she’s got an EMT shift tomorrow, figured I’d stop in before Paul dismissed his trainees and there was hell in the kitchen,” he explained with his hands in his pockets as the other two shifted to make room for him. They stared at the door, no one making a motion to knock or go inside.

“Every time I stand here, I worry about opening the door,” Harry whispered as he started messing with his bottom lip, a nervous tic that drove Louis insane.

“Oh, hey, guys,” Zayn’s voice was quiet as he approached the door from the other end of the hall, Liam following closely behind him. He and Liam slowed their footsteps, the group shifting until all five of them were staring at the door. “We do this after every mission; why is that?” Zayn asked as he looked at the other four members of Team Zap, all of whom only shrugged in response.

“Probably a moral support thing,” Niall reasoned, and the rest nodded. It made sense; they were all afraid of the same thing whenever they got back from a mission, afraid it had been their last good bye beforehand. They knew the others would tell them if it had been, but it still did nothing to calm them down and make them want the extra reassurance that if they found nothing good on the other side of the door, at least they had each other.

“I’m sorry about earlier, mate. I know you’re just worried about her,” Liam said quietly as he turned to Louis, and the blue-eyed man gave him a dismissive wave.

“Don’t worry about it; it’s been forgotten and your suggestion has been taken into consideration,” he said teasingly as he smirked at Liam, who only smiled at that. At the very least, that was one problem solved.

“Someone’s got to knock,” Zayn said quietly and Niall nodded before reaching over and knocking five times quickly in succession. They all heard the excited squeal coming from inside – it was their signature knock whenever they were coming to visit as a whole and they couldn’t help but smile as they got told to come on in. Liam reached for the doorknob, pushing it open and starting their procession in.

“Hey, Princess, how’re you feeling?” Louis asked, his voice sweet and playful as he approached the bed, the other boys following suit as they circled the bed like guards standing watch.

“Fuse!” Lux said excitedly as she sat up in bed, grinning as she took in the sight of the five boys together. She was small, tinier than most six-year-olds they’d come across before, but she still held the same excited spark she had as a baby when her mother joined the Movement. “Mum said you had a mission today,” she said slowly, her face curious as she tried to decipher the five males’ facial expressions. They tried to keep on happy faces for her, even if everyone knew something was wrong – including Lux.

“We did, Princess; it went pretty well,” Louis said, grinning as she clapped. He didn’t miss the way the IV attached to her arm waved as she did so, fighting back the sad smile on his face as she looked around at the other boys.

“Good! Did you get lots of good stuff?” Lux didn’t know the specifics of what each mission was – they’d told her once it was for her own good, really, until she was old enough to properly join the Movement – but she did know they’d started a “Robin Hood Movement” to go along with the One Direction Movement to get goods to the less fortunate.

“Lots and lots of good stuff; enough to take care of hundreds of kids,” Liam said in reply, a smile on his face. It was a genuine one, not one he forced to be happy for Lux, because he was just as happy to help the less fortunate, even if it did feel like too much of a distraction from the Movement itself.

Lux nodded firmly as she took in that information, a smile on her face. The others were quiet for a moment, just watching the happy look on her face until Niall shifted to lean in and kiss the top of Lux’s head.

“Uncle Ni’s going to take Auntie Gem’s shift to watch over HQ, Princess,” Niall said, as if he needed to remind himself why he was there. “But I’ll tell you all about the fireworks from today when you wake up, okay?” he added, and Lux nodded enthusiastically as she leaned up to kiss Niall on the cheek.

“Guard well, Uncle Ni,” she said into his cheek before he pulled away and gave her a smile. He didn’t move for a split second before he smiled and gave her and the others a small wave and headed out the door. As soon as he was gone, she turned her attention to the other boys around her, looking each of them in the eye before stopping on Liam. “Sandwiches?” she asked, tilting her head in confusion as she saw the sandwiches in Liam’s hands.

“Yeah, figured I’d bring one down to Bows since she might not have eaten all day,” he explained with a smile and Lux only took a second, obviously thinking, before shaking her head.

“I saw her yesterday! She had a pink, sparkly bow in her hair!” she said excitedly, grinning as the boys chuckled.

“It’s what she’s known for,” Zayn said, smiling as he leaned in to kiss the top of Lux’s head. “I was just about to head to my room for a nap, rest up til I have to take over for Uncle Ni. So I’ll see you later all right, Princess?” he told her quietly and she only nodded happily.

“See you later, Uncle Zayn!” she said, waving happily as he made his way towards the door. “Are you going t’see Bows now, Uncle Li?” she asked quickly, furrowing her eyebrows together.

“Unless you want me to stay?” he offered, but she shook her head.

“Sandwiches are important,” she said, poking the closest sandwich before tugging at the cloth bracelet he wore all the time, gesturing for him to lean in. “See you later!” she added cheerfully as she kissed his cheek.

“See you later, pup,” he said happily, kissing her cheek before heading for the door. No one ever said ‘good bye’ to Lux, the fear that it was the last always too strong in them. So it was always ‘see you later’ or some other, noncommittal greeting, so it didn’t feel like goodbye. It was amazing, really, how much they were willing to pretend for her sake. Amazing and maybe a little sad, because they knew she knew just how bad it was, but she didn’t care. She tried to make it seem like everything was okay so no one worried about her, but it never worked since everyone was worried about her anyways. They supposed it was the effort to pretend that counted, really.

“Your turn,” she said seriously, making eye contact with Harry. Her mouth was a firm, expectant life and he chuckled as he reached in his back pocket for the doll he was keeping there.

“I saw her in the shop window and thought you’d like her,” he said, smiling as Lux’s face lit up, reaching for the doll.

“She’s _beautiful_ ,” Lux said; her voice was in complete awe of the doll as she ran her fingers through the doll’s yellow yarn hair. “Thank you, Uncle Hazza!” she added excitedly, opening her arms for a hug. Harry quickly leaned in, wrapping his arms around her lightly so as not to knock over the IV beside her bed. It had taken almost two years for them to teach her not to pull at the IV that kept her attached to the bed. It wasn’t like she needed the IV all the time – it just helped supply her with nutrients she wasn’t getting from the foods she couldn’t keep down – and she was just as rambunctious wearing it as she was without it, so the boys could only smile when traces of the younger, healthier Lux would show up while this older, sicklier Lux was attached to the damn machine.

“You’re welcome, bug,” he replied, kissing the top of her head before pulling away. “What’re you going to name her?” he asked, patting Lux’s knee lightly.

“Hmm,” she hummed softly as she gave the doll a thoughtful look. “Charlotte,” Lux said, nodding seriously as her finger ran lightly over the bright blue cat-eye stones that made up the doll’s eyes.

Harry paused, looking over at Louis who had visibly tensed, before turning his attention back to Lux. “That’s a lovely name, bug,” he said with a small smile, leaning in to kiss her forehead. Lux nodded, a soft hum escaping her before she looked up from the doll and at Louis.

To his credit, Louis had recovered and only held his hands up with a short laugh before shaking his head. “You should’ve had me go first, cause I haven’t got anything to top a pretty doll like that,” he said teasingly, pointing at the doll.

Lux giggled and shrugged. “Tell me a story then,” she said simply, and when Louis hummed, as if he was thinking about it, she slapped his arm. “Story time with Uncle Lou!” she said excitedly and Louis only laughed, shaking his head.

“All right, all right, what story do you want to hear?” he asked as he shifted in his seat, watching as Lux wriggled in her spot to get comfortable in the bed, the doll tucked in the crook of her elbow as she wiggled her toes.

“How about … the one with the princess who was part fish?” she asked excitedly, causing the two males to laugh.

“I’m going to go make something to eat, Lux, but enjoy your story,” Harry said cheerfully, leaning in to kiss her forehead.

“Eat well!”

“Sleep well, bug,” Harry said happily before turning to Louis. “You want me to make you something too?” he asked as he stood up.

“Please, I’m starved,” Louis replied with a small smile just before turning back to Lux. “I already told you that story, silly bear,” he said, poking at her stomach as Harry headed for the door.

“But I fell asleep before you got to the end!” she cried out in protest, pouting and crossing her arms. Harry couldn’t help the smile on his face as he watched the interaction, sighing happily as he shut the door behind him to head up to the kitchen, whistling a soft tune.

“Hey, baby brother,” Gemma’s voice said from the kitchen table as Harry entered, a small smile on her face. He paused when he saw a bowl of cereal in front of her, all the fixings still around her, before reaching for two bowls and two spoons.

“Hey, you,” he said, sitting down beside her and placing a bowl and spoon to the side and filling the other in cereal and milk. “Good day?” he asked as he took the first bite.

“It was all right. Not a lot of injuries from Paul and Leigh, and you came back in one piece, so I couldn’t really complain,” she said with a smile as she reached out to pat his hand encouragingly. She was quiet for a second, but Harry could tell she had more to say, so he waited patiently. “Mum wants us for dinner this weekend.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

It wasn’t that Harry hated going home – he loved home, loved the comfort it gave him to be something so familiar and nice. That was the problem, though, it was so familiar and nice and for the few hours that he was home, he forgot all about the Movement and just how bad it could actually get. When he remembered again, he felt guilty, awful that he had so much when so few had so little. Try as he might to avoid such negative feelings towards his parents, he found himself resenting his mum and stepfather for how much they had. He knew it wasn’t their fault – they weren’t asked to be born into influential families anymore than he and Gemma were – but they had so much and found themselves content with keeping it all within Centric.

“She said she misses you, H. Both of us, really, but at least I answer all her calls,” Gemma continued, and Harry sighed. He wished he could hate his sister for saying that, claim he was busy with his own life, but they both knew that outside of the Movement, Harry didn’t have to do much of anything. He was a musician; he was entertainment for a few minutes when everyone else wanted to see what marvellous talent Anne’s boy had. Otherwise, he wasn’t expected to do much of anything because of the status his family had. He wasn’t expected to work to make a living, not like some of the members of the Movement.

“I know, G,” he said quietly, running a hand through his hair. “I’ll come to dinner. Same time on Saturday?” he asked, giving her a small smile as she sighed in gratitude.

“Mhmm, as always,” she said, reaching forward to bury her fingers in his hair and pull him in for a quick kiss to his forehead. “You’re a good kid, H, you know that, right? And it’s not your fault you live the way you do back home,” she assured him, already knowing where his thoughts were at that moment.

“I know, I know; thanks, Gem,” he said, smiling a little as he let himself relax into her touch. “You know, you don’t always have to be so clever,” Harry added teasingly, pulling away to smirk at him with a raised eyebrow.

“One of us has got to be Mum’s clever one, and it obviously isn’t you,” she said playfully, tugging at his hair before pulling away and sitting up. “I’m going to catch a few hours of sleep. Lux still up?” she asked as she stood up slowly, dusting off her skirt.

“If she is, it isn’t my fault,” Louis’ voice said from behind Harry, an amused lilt to it. “Cereal?” he asked suspiciously, raising an eyebrow at the meal selection.

“Already out for Gem, figured I’d just freeload,” Harry replied, chuckling as he took another bite and let Louis sit down beside him.

“See you two later. Get some rest,” Gemma said, placing kisses on the tops of Harry and Louis’ heads gently.

“Gem, we’re the same age, stop acting like such a _mum_ ,” Louis replied teasingly, though he couldn’t help the small smile on his face as Gemma slapped the back of his head lightly before heading downstairs to the bunks. “I swear she forgets we’re the same age sometimes,” he muttered as he filled his bowl with cereal and milk.

“Yeah well, you act younger than Lux sometimes,” Harry replied as he took a bite of his cereal.

Louis looked up, giving him an offended look as he poked the boy’s cheek, causing him to stick his tongue out at him. “Nothing wrong with it!” he said seriously, huffing as Harry snorted into his milk.

“I never said there was, Lou.” Harry gave him a huge, dimpled grin as he finished off his cereal, standing up to take his bowl and Gemma’s bowl to the sink, whistling softly as he did so.

“That should be your signature,” Louis said off-handedly as he swirled the cereal in his bowl around a bit. “You whistle when you’re about to hit someone, so it’s like they can hear you coming before they actually see or feel you,” he continued, looking up at Harry, who had stopped in his tracks to give him a confused look.

“That would require strategy before attacking a guard,” the taller boy replied with an amused smile as he placed the bowls in the sink and started soaking them.

Louis laughed, shaking his head a little. “No, I suppose the screaming as you toss a grenade is a good enough signature for you.”

“You should see if Zayn would be willing to do that. He’s at a better position to whistle before he aims,” Harry offered as he sat back down, and Louis only hummed softly in response. Although the hum sounded like an affirmative, Harry knew that Louis was never going to bring it up with Zayn.

Zayn, despite his reserved nature, was a creature of habit, really, and he liked to do things that he was familiar with. Adding another step to his attack would mess everything up, including his aim most likely, so it was always best to just let him do things at his own pace.

“She looks sicker,” Louis muttered as he stared at the milk swirling in his bowl. “Tinier, like she’s barely holding onto this world,” he whispered, and Harry only sighed softly, his arm going around Louis’ shoulder. The older man leaned into the touch, closing his eyes as Harry rubbed his shoulder lightly.

“She’s a fighter. She’s not going to let go without putting up a fight, I promise,” he said sincerely, his face drawn into a serious line.

“I know, but what if that’s not enough? What if what she’s doing and what we’re trying aren’t enough?”

“Then we do something to memorialize the strongest person any of us knew,” Harry said, his voice saying the whole task was simple enough. They both knew, though, that it wouldn’t be that easy. How did you memorialize someone who was practically the mascot of a rebellion that wasn’t meant to be acknowledged in a large scale? The Movement couldn’t just build a statue after all.

“You’re supposed to be the younger one here, stop being so wise,” Louis said playfully, chuckling as he drained the milk in his cereal bowl. He smiled as he placed the bowl on the table, leaning back on the chair. “What do you think our lives would be like if this wasn’t it?” he asked, his voice quiet as he stared up at the ceiling.

“Well, hopefully I’d still be entertaining,” Harry murmured, shrugging as he stretched his long legs out in front of him.

“Yeah, you’re pretty good at that,” Louis muttered, clasping his hands together and putting them on top of his stomach. “Niall would probably be entertaining with you too, practically bricking himself whenever he performs from excitement,” he continued, chuckling softly.

“Zayn’s got his art, so I’m sure he’d be doing that if he wasn’t fighting a rebellion,” Harry added on, a small smile on his face.

“Liam’s got his whole ‘saving people’ shtick, bet he’d fancy himself a superhero.” Louis’ voice was quiet and fond as he spoke, sighing.

“What about you?” Harry asked quietly, turning his head to look at Louis intently.

“Probably at my sixth deadbeat job for the month,” he muttered quietly. “Or, like, probably be taking care of my sisters and helping Mum around the house. Maybe my dad would’ve stayed,” he muttered as he spoke, sighing a little. He closed his eyes for a moment, shaking his head as he stood up. “Too bad we’re in this one, I guess,” he muttered, dusting off his jeans and taking his bowl to the sink. He was quiet as he soaked the bowl, his eyebrows furrowed and his blue eyes obviously far away, maybe still thinking of a world where things aren’t as awful and sad as they are in New London.

“You could be an actor,” Harry said quietly, turning to look at Louis. “You perform at the local theatre now, why wouldn’t you do that in a different world?” he asked, tilting his head as he shifted in his seat to follow the older man’s movements.

“Because if we weren’t in this world, it means a hundred percent of the population is still alive, and I don’t know if I’d be good enough for that when I’m not one of the last few actors on earth,” he said simply, shrugging as he started for the door. “Get some rest, Haz; I’ll see you in the morning,” Louis’ voice thoroughly dismissed the conversation, even if his words hadn’t, and Harry didn’t say anything as Louis walked out of the kitchen and down to the bunks.

“Sleep well, Lou,” Harry murmured, running a hand through his curls as he stood up and headed downstairs as well, humming softly as he did so.

 

Three days later, Gemma, Liam, and Louis were sitting around the kitchen table, talking in hushed whispers. It was early in the morning, Gemma had just finished an EMT shift, Liam was coming in from the fire department, and Louis had finished a night-long rehearsal, but neither of them could sleep because of what Gemma had overheard.

“There’s going to be a large shipment of drugs of all kinds in one week, right here. They were really vague about what kind of drugs are in it, but people were talking about it like some miracle was coming. It could be something we can use,” she said, pointing at the dock just outside of the slums. She tugged her hair out of the ponytail she kept it in for work, looking up at the boys.

“It’ll be heavily guarded though,” Liam said simply, running his fingers over the blueprints of the harbour. “If it’s some miracle, then the government is going to want it all for themselves, to control and sell for a shit ton of money to Centric citizens,” he muttered, taking a deep breath as he buried his face in his hands.

“How do we know it’s what we need?” Louis asked hesitantly, looking over at the two of them. “Harry told me what Robin told him about incurable diseases. What if this isn’t the disease it’s meant to cure?” he asked, his voice raising a little.

Liam could see the panic bubbling behind the blue, reaching over to squeeze Louis’ forearm. “It might not be, but chances are, it’ll be something Centric doesn’t need complete control over,” he said quietly, and Louis nodded. It might not be what they wanted, but at the very least, it would be something they could use.

“I’ll see if I can lift anything while we’re home this weekend, see if Robin’s got anything on the miracle drug in his office,” Gemma said, fighting back a yawn as she ran her fingers through her hair.

“You’re going home this weekend?” Louis asked, blinking as he sat up a little.

“Yeah, Mum’s requested me and H head home this weekend. Just a dinner, but we might stay the night, who knows?” she said, shrugging as stood, shaking her head to fight back a yawn. “I’m going to grab a few hours of sleep. I’ll see you two later, yeah?” she asked, smiling at them both and giving them a small wave before heading downstairs.

Louis was quiet for a second, his fingers drawing idle patterns on the wood. “Li, we need to find out if this is what we need,” he muttered and Liam only nodded in response. “The doctors aren’t too optimistic about her making it to the end of the year,” he added, exhaling slowly as Liam’s hands formed into fists on top of the table.

“I can’t believe they know how bad it is, but no one is doing _anything_ to actually solve the problem. Every fucking check up is just ‘this is worse’ or ‘this has taken over x, y, and z organs.’ Why do we even bother with them?” Liam asked angrily, slamming his fist on the table.

“What’s going on?” Niall’s voice asked from the doorway as the Irish lad joined them in the kitchen.

“New shipment of drugs,” Liam started as Niall went wide eyed, grabbing an apple from the fruit basket on the kitchen counter and taking a bite. “People are acting like there’s some miracle drug, so we want to at least have a look, see if it’s what Lux needs,” he continued and Niall nodded along, running a hand through his hair.

“Do we know anything else about it, except that it’s a miracle drug?” Niall asked through the apple bits in his mouth.

“Not really. I think we’ll need to send Zayn and Harry into the ranks to find out more,” Louis said as he tapped the table a few times absently. Niall nodded absently, taking another bite of his apple. “You feel all right? Apples aren’t usually your go to,” he asked, raising an eyebrow at the blond.

“Yeah, just needed something to snack on and it was right there,” he muttered, shrugging as he ran a hand through his hair. “I’ll go grab Zayn and Harry then,” Niall said, standing up and tossing his apple core in the bin before heading down the stairs to the bunk.

“I could help Zayn out at the docks. I fit in well enough with the others,” Liam offered, raising an eyebrow at Louis and giving him a small shrug.

Louis was quiet for a second before he nodded. “We need to gather as much intel as quickly as we can, so having two of you at the docks might be a good idea. Zayn can deal with gathering the secrets and you can see what the locals know,” Louis said his voice strategic as he stared down at the schematics. He looked up when he heard footsteps, nodding as he saw Zayn, slow with sleep and rubbing at his eyes, step inside the kitchen, followed by Niall, who looked far more somber than any of them had ever seen him, and then Harry, who was shaking out his hair as he flopped down into the chair beside Louis, his head dropping onto the table as soon as he sat down.

“What’s going on?” Zayn asked his accent thicker than usual as he grabbed a granola bar from the pantry before sitting down beside Liam.

“New shipment that Gem heard about,” Louis started as Niall sat down beside Harry. “More drugs, and there are a few whispers about it.”

Harry’s head popped up at that, his eyes wide as he waited for Louis to continue.

“We don’t know much else about what’s on this shipment, but we know it’s coming in a week and there’s something that people are treating like a miracle drug,” he continued, turning to make eye contact with each member. “We’re going to need some intel, but because we’ve just raided a medical truck with regular level guards, we’ll probably have to amp it up for this one if it’s as important as they think it is. Chances are they’ll pull the Vanted out for this one,” Louis said seriously, rubbing over his face slowly.

“Fuck,” Zayn muttered, running a hand through his hair. “I mean, it’s not the first time we’ve had to deal with them at least,” he said, his tone trying for optimistic as he leaned over to look at the blueprints of the docks, even though they all knew he’d had them memorized since the first time he had to go undercover at the docks.

“No, but that time they didn’t know who we were, didn’t know what to expect. We’ve got signatures now and they’d know what to expect. They’re are private security for a reason, highly trained and shit,” Liam said seriously as Niall let out a low whistle.

“I’ve got just the layout for this, though. I’ve been saving it for something big, and if they’re going to pull out their big guns, we can pull ours out too,” Niall said, his tone far too cheerful, considering the topic they were discussing.

“Sometimes you scare me,” Harry said seriously, his voice slower than usual as he turned to Louis. “So, what sort of intel are we talking?” he asked, rubbing at his eyes as he started waking himself up properly.

“Well, Gem said she’ll look through Robin’s files in his office when you two go for dinner this weekend, so you’ll be on distraction duty for that,” Louis said as Harry’s eyebrows furrowed together before the younger boy nodded. “And Zayn’ll be down at the docks, taking care of finding out the secrets he always manages to get and Liam is going to be in charge of finding out what the locals know,” he continued, making eye contact with both males as he spoke, and they nodded in response. “Niall and I are going to take care of trying to figure out how the shipment’s going to happen – probably get some help from Jade – and then put together a distract and destroy plan,” he continued, running his fingers through his hair. He hadn’t bothered shaving in the past three days or getting a haircut the past month, so his hair had grown out and his scruff was getting thicker, but he didn’t care. There were bigger things to worry about, after all.

The table was quiet, each of them thinking about their specific parts in the grand scheme of things. The only sound was the whirring of the old refrigerator Paul had dug up at some point and the tapping noise of Louis’ lighter on the wood.

“We’re going to be doing a lot of improvising, aren’t we?” Zayn muttered, not lifting his head from where he was staring intently at the wood of the table.

“Probably, but it’s not like it’s the first time we had to improvise,” Louis said, his voice matter-of-fact as he flicked his lighter on.

“Fire, lots of fire and explosions then,” Niall said, a smirk on his face as he watched the flame flicker before Louis blew it out. “Fuck, this is going to be _fantastic_ ,” he said excitedly and Harry let out a loud laugh.

“Only you would think that the hardest mission of our lives is fantastic, Nialler,” Harry said teasingly, slapping the back of Niall’s head lightly as the blond shrugged.

“You know him, anything where he gets to use his big toys,” Liam added playfully nudging Niall’s calf under the table.

“Look, mates, at the very least, we’ll go down fighting and with a bang, so we can at least drink to that!” Niall said excitedly, standing and heading for the liquor cabinet.

“It’s four in the fucking morning, Horan, put the alcohol back,” Zayn muttered, rolling his eyes. There was an amused smile on his face, though, so Niall took that as an okay to pull the bottle of tequila and five shot glasses.

“C’mon, one shot isn’t going to kill us,” Niall said seriously, placing a glass in front of all of them as he filled them. Zayn sighed as he rolled his eyes and took a hold of the shot, the others following suit. “To kicking government arse and going out with a bang!” he said, his tone celebratory as he held up his glass.

“Cheers!” the others cried out in unison before they all threw their shots back, silent except for the sound of their glasses hitting the wood. They all stared at each other for a few seconds before they burst out in laughter.

“Tequila at four in the morning, what the hell are we doing?” Liam asked between laughs, shaking his head as he buried his face in his palms.

“Fuck if I know; why the hell do we listen to anything Niall suggests?” Harry said, rolling his eyes as the blond slipped into his seat again.

“Shut up, Styles; your ideas are worse than mine!” Niall said seriously, pouring himself another shot. “Any other takers?” he asked, and for a moment, the table was quiet before Louis slid his glass over, a small smile on his face.

“Hit me,” he said, shrugging at the curious look on everyone’s faces. “If we’re going out with a bang, I don’t want to not remember the last time I got drunk,” he explained, running a hand through his hair as Niall poured him a shot and slid it over, spilling some tequila on the wood.

“Nothing more memorable than day drinking, I guess,” Harry said, snorting as he held his glass out for another shot. It was another moment before Liam slid his glass over, shrugging as he waited for Niall to fill his glass.

“It’s four in the fucking morning,” Zayn repeated under his breath, but the sound of his glass sliding over the wood was enough to cover it up if he really wanted.

“For Lux, yeah?” Louis said as they all held their shot glasses in hand. His tone was slightly more somber than before, a small smile on his face. The others only nodded, a murmured “cheers!” among them before they all threw back their shots, placing their glasses upside down on the table when they finished.

“What the hell do you five think you’re doing?” a voice said sharply through the kitchen, and the five of them turned to see Lou Teasedale, Lux’s mother, standing in the doorway, arms on her hips and an eyebrow raised at them. “I get back from cleaning up your mess at Zone B to find you all day drinking,” she said, her tone accusing and scolding as she walked over to the table and standing by Louis’ chair.

“No one said you had to be gone for three days,” Niall said, shrugging as Lou grabbed the container they kept the blueprints in and threw it at his head. “Sorry, sorry! You know we love you, Lou!” he cried out, throwing his hands up to shield himself from the plastic container as it bounced off his head and rolled onto the floor, hitting the wall lightly as Niall straightened in his seat.

“What the hell is going on with your hair, Tomlinson?” Lou asked seriously, tugging at a strand as Louis tried to pull away. Lou was a hair stylist for Centric citizens, but wasn’t top tier enough to be able to live _in_ the Centric and count as a citizen. It was part of the reason why she’d joined the Movement, because she knew how cruel treatment of non-Centric citizens could be and _hated_ everything the government stood for. The fact that the Movement was the only thing willing to help her daughter when she got sick was just another reason for her to keep her loyalty.

“Why don’t you ask Harry about his?” Louis offered, pointing at the younger boy, who was glaring at Louis, an offended gasp escaping him.

As Lou turned her sights on Harry, she groaned, running a hand through her hair. “I’m not even going to try anymore. What are you five doing up at four in the morning?” she asked after exhaling a heavy sigh.

“Gemma heard about a shipment that might have something important on it,” Zayn said evenly, a small smile on his face.

Lou paused, looking each of them in the eye for a few seconds, as if to gauge whether or not they were lying or holding anything back. “What do we know about it?” she asked, her voice quiet and somber.

“Not much yet, but we just found out about it this morning when Gemma came back from her EMT shift,” Liam explained and Lou nodded along quietly. “We’re going to start working on gathering more intel today. Zayn and I are taking on jobs at the docks,” he continued and Lou waved her hands a few times, shaking her head.

“I’m – I’m good not knowing the details. Just … thank you so much. I don’t think we say it enough,” she said quietly, a small smile on her face. “I’m going to go check on her and grab some sleep. I’ll talk to you guys later,” she continued, running a hand through her hair as she sighed in relief.

As soon as she was out of earshot, Harry turned to Louis, a serious look in his eyes. “We need this to be the cure,” he said seriously, and Louis nodded.

“I know.” His voice was slightly shaky as he exhaled slowly, running a hand through his hair. “I know we do,” he muttered, his voice steadier as he stood, glancing at the clock on the wall. “Reconvene in five hours. Til then, get some rest.” 


	3. Conspire Against the Odds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow, i'm so sorry this took forever to post! i will try to be better about future chapters. anyways, happy harry styles' 20th birthday, everyone! i know he's meant to be the one getting presents, but you guys get one from me too i guess?? the chapter is unbeta'd and it was a little difficult for me to write for a while, but i got it out and i hope you guys like it! if you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment or catch me on tumblr as [styleswanderlust](http://styleswanderlust.tumblr.com)

“We have to go in eventually,” Gemma said quietly as she and Harry stood in front of the large oak door. Despite the futuristic look to most of the neighbourhood, the Twist house was one that had stuck to the Victorian look of old money. The inside, like most houses in the Centric, was full of technology that the government had placed in the hands of their biggest and richest supporters. The two had been standing in front of the door for a few minutes now, probably long enough that their mum and stepdad were well aware that they were there.

“You do it,” Harry said, nudging his sister lightly as his lips curved into a pout. She rolled her eyes, elbowing his side as she walked up to the scanner just beside the door and spread her fingers out on top of the pad. It was silent for a second before the laser scanners on the porch scanned their entire bodies, Harry and Gemma both standing still.

_Welcome, Gemma and Harry_ , the familiar female robot voice that Harry had named ‘Petra’ as a child said as the door unlocked and swung open slowly. They shared a look, shrugging before they stepped inside, Gemma first and then Harry. _Your mother requests your company in the living room_ , Petra continued as the door shut behind them.

“Thanks, Petra,” Harry said simply as he shrugged out of his coat and placed it on the coat rack before helping Gemma out of hers and placing it beside his. They started towards the living room, taking the glasses of champagne that Petra had made for them, before smiling as they caught sight of their mother, who was sitting in her usual chair in the living room.

“Oh, my babies!” Anne said excitedly, putting her own glass down on the coffee table, a metal coaster appearing underneath it as she stood. “I’ve missed you both so much,” she continued, pulling them into a hug.

“Hi, Mum,” Gemma muttered as she buried her face in Anne’s shoulder, Harry’s arms wrapping around the both of them easily.

“I honestly despise having you two outside of the Centric. I never get to see you anymore,” Anne said, sighing as she cupped Harry’s cheeks and kissed his forehead.

“Sorry, Mum, but work’s been keeping me busy,” Harry said apologetically, smiling as she pulled away and gestured for them to sit.

“You should tell me one day what it is you do,” Anne told him as she sat, taking a sip of her wine as Gemma and Harry took their seats on the two-seater across from Anne.

“Maybe one day, Mum,” Harry said cheerfully, a small smile on his face.

“I just don’t understand how something could be _so_ secret you can’t tell your own mother!” Anne said, waving her hand dismissively as she took a sip of her wine again.

“Anne, are you harassing Harry about his career again?” Robin Twist’s voice asked jokingly as he stepped into the living room, smiling as he walked over to the two-seater, his arms open for a hug.

“Hey, Robin,” Gemma said cheerfully, standing as she hugged him back, a smile on her face. He grinned as he pulled away, turning to hug Harry, who had put his champagne down on the table to stand and hug his stepfather.

“I’m not harassing him about his _career_ , just about keeping secrets from his mother,” Anne said simply, huffing as she shifted in her seat to let Robin sat on the arm of her chair, his arm resting on the back of her chair as Petra served him a glass of whiskey.

“I’ve probably kept more from you and my mother than Harry has, you know that right?” Robin asked teasingly, kissing the top of her hair as Anne sighed, shaking her head a little.

“Yes, but that’s not the same _thing_. I know you’re doing something in the medicine field, as is Gemma, but Harry’s entire career is like one big … _question mark_ ,” Anne replied, sighing exasperatedly as Harry smiled into his champagne.

“Mum, leave him be. He’ll tell you when he’s ready. That’s how he’s always been, you know that,” Gemma said seriously, downing her champagne and Harry made a mental note to get her a present for being the best sister in the world.

“They’ve both always been like that, love,” Robin added with a smile, and Anne gave them a defeated sigh.

“If I can’t talk to my children or my husband about their jobs, then _what_ am I supposed to talk about?” she asked, giving them all pointed looks. The three of them were silent, avoiding Anne’s eyes as they looked at each other.

“What about that Christmas party you said you wanted to have?” Robin asked, and at the sound of it, Gemma and Harry perked up a little.

“Christmas party?” Gemma asked, raising an eyebrow as she shifted in her seat to face her mum better.

“I thought the Calders always threw the Christmas party of the year?” Harry added on, furrowing his eyebrows as his mum gave them a grin, giggling a little. She was obviously very proud of herself for getting the opportunity to host the party, and that brought a smile to Harry’s face.

“Winnie’s been feeling under the weather and with Christmas only a week away, she didn’t want to risk things being less than great because of it,” she explained with an understanding smile.

“I hope she feels better soon,” Gemma said, her tone sympathetic as she took a sip of her champagne.

“Mrs. Calder’s never been sick before. What’s happened?” Harry asked, unable to keep the interest out of his tone.

“She wouldn’t say, but I’m sure she’ll be fine in no time,” Anne told him, her tone light and dismissive. Harry looked over at Gemma, raising an eyebrow at her as she stared at the table sceptically.

“What day is the party again, Mum? A week?”

“Well, about six days _technically_ , but who’s counting technicalities?” she said, waving her hand in the air. She started talking about the preparations necessary for the party, asking Robin for his opinion once in a while. Gemma and Harry, for the most part, were silent, half-listening to what she said and both very lost in their own thoughts. After a few minutes of this, Anne sighed, shaking her head. “Go on upstairs and get cleaned up,” she told them, shooing at them. “I’m obviously not getting anything out of you here,” she added with a small, amused smile.

The two gave her a sheepish smile before placing their champagne glasses on the coffee table and making their way upstairs. They finally made it to Gemma’s room and they stopped, both entering the old bedroom and then staring at each other for a second.

“It’s the same night as the shipment,” Harry said simply, shaking his hair out.

“I bet it’s the same time too,” Gemma muttered, groaning as she ran her hands through her hair and fell backwards onto her bed.

“Do you think they did that on purpose? No one in Centric would miss the Christmas party, so it’d make it obvious to find the Centric members of the rebellion like that,” he suggested, flopping face down onto the bed beside her, causing her to bounce up a little with the force.

“Maybe it’s not a ploy? Maybe it’s a coincidence and we’re just being paranoid?” she offered, her tone quiet because they both knew there was no way this was just a coincidence.

“No such thing as coincidences. Why didn’t we figure out that the Christmas party is the same day as the shipment?”

“Normally we can get out of the Christmas party when it gets late enough, but Mum’s hosting. You _know_ she’ll want us to stay the whole night,” Gemma muttered, sitting up and pulling her legs up to cross them underneath her. They’re both quiet for a few minutes before Harry pushes himself up onto his elbows, turning to look at Gemma hopefully.

“What do you think Eleanor’s mum has?” he asked quietly and Gemma shook her head.

“I don’t know, but it might not be the same thing, H, you know that right?” Gemma whispered, and he sighed, nodding.

“I know, but she never gets sick and Lou said it started as Lux feeling ‘under the weather’ and she thought it had just been a cold,” he told her and Gemma sighed, reaching over to play with his hair. “If a Centric citizen has it, then they’ll probably look into it more, right? So maybe Lux still has a chance,” he explained, leaning into her touch a little.

“Yeah, H, I know, but I don’t want you getting your hopes up, okay? It might just actually be a cold,” she said softly, leaning in to kiss his hair lightly. “C’mon, let’s get dressed so Mum stops worrying about us.”

“You still need to get into Robin’s office.”

“Don’t remind me. Think you can distract them while I go to the bathroom?” she asked, chuckling softly as he sat up and leaned his forehead against her shoulder.

“Are you kidding me? I am a _master_ at distracting them from your shenanigans, or have you already forgotten?” he asked, a mischievous smile on his face.

“Ha-ha, you’re an asshole,” she muttered, shoving his shoulder lightly. “C’mon, let’s go,” she said, standing and holding a hand out to help him up. Harry took her hand and pulled himself up, nudging her shoulder with the top of his head as he waited for her to head out the door so he could follow.

\- - -

Liam was humming happily as he walked down the wharf, running a hand through his hair before rubbing at the scruff that was accumulating on his jaw. “Hey, mate, how’s the missus?” he asked one of his shipmates with a grin, clapping his shoulder lightly. He laughed at the man’s reply¸ nodding as he kept walking along. When he reached the fishermen’s market, he smiled, poking around one man’s haul of red snappers. He was inspecting the gills of one when a familiar figure moved silently beside him, picking up a monkfish and talking to the owner about it before he started sifting through the rest of the pile.

“They’re using one of the lower class harbours,” Zayn whispered, his mouth barely moving and his voice barely even audible to Liam. But he’d been working with the boy for a while, so he’d found himself able to pick up the information as Zayn spoke. “Big ship, but it won’t be distinct. The crew is all new though, none of the workers recognize anyone, so probably all members of the Vanted, all well trained and highly organized. They’ll be on their guard for us too, so we’ll need to change up our pattern a lot.”

“I talked to some workers with experience with the Vanted; trained in every combat style known to man, apparently,” Liam replied, his head tilting away from Zayn a little as he surveyed one of the fish. “They’re bringing in some fancy, Centric cruise ship the same day, probably to throw the attention off the big and bland one,” he muttered, sighing as he shook his head at some woman’s offer of half a squid. “Get Bones something for dinner or else he’ll have another bowl of cereal,” he added quietly as he paid the fishmonger and walked away. Zayn stayed a little longer, buying a whole sea bass, before leaving in the opposite direction Liam had left.

\- - -

“Lou?” Niall’s voice called out into headquarters. Although Niall and Louis had their own flat that they shared as civilians – the only two of Team Zap with direct contact outside of the Movement – he knew that when he wanted to think or strategise, he would always, _always_ find Louis at headquarters. It was just a matter of which part of headquarters he would find him in. That was always the challenge, especially considering Louis could make himself ridiculously tiny when he wanted to.

It took him a few minutes to find Louis sitting inside the hall closet that Zayn and Harry used to keep their costumes to be able blend in when they needed to survey and infiltrate. He wasn’t alone either. Folded up with their knees to their chests, Louis and Jade, or Bows as Louis called her, sat on the floor of the closet, half-finished bowls of mac and cheese in their laps. They looked up at Niall with easy smiles when he opened the door, although they turned sheepish when Niall gave them an incredulous look.

“What are you doing in a closet?” he asked seriously, sitting down cross legged in front of the open door.

“I was making mac and cheese when Bows came out of hiding,” Louis explained, nodding at the girl in front of him with a huge polka dotted bow in her curls.

Jade Thirlwall was a tiny girl with caramel-coloured skin and dark brown curls and legs that went on for miles. She loved wearing bows – thus why Louis gave her the name Bows – and spent a lot of time in her little cave of technology. Surprisingly enough, she was the least known about by anyone – she was an orphan, Zayn had found her after they’d both been trying to hack the same house (and she managed to do it in half the time he could), and she lived at headquarters. After Lux, she was the only one who was constantly there. She very rarely left the building, but she could also be everywhere. Jade had the ability to hack into any building if she wanted to, all while undetected by the government. It was an interesting sort of genius really. And she was gorgeous and a great dancer to boot, which – Niall always said – were very important things to be.

“Haven’t seen you in a while, babe. How’ve you been?” Niall asked, giving her his flashiest, most charming smile.

“All right; I managed to find a way to go into a building without having to be identified,” she said, giving him a huge, proud grin. “Well, it attempts to identify you still, obviously, but then it just sort of glitches, like it doesn’t understand or see that there’s someone there,” Jade continued, taking a bite of mac and cheese.

“Oh, oh, give him the kicker! This is my favourite part!” Louis said excitedly, clapping his hands as Jade giggled and Niall raised an eyebrow at both of them.

“In order to find or fix the glitch, the building would have to go into a complete shutdown for at least twenty minutes,” she said, giggling as Louis beamed.

“Innit great?” he asked excitedly and Niall only laughed, shaking his head.

“What’s great? And why are you in the closet?” Harry’s voice asked as he stepped up behind them.

“Hey, Jade!” Gemma said as she undid the scarf she’d been using to keep herself warm from her neck. “How’s it?”

“It’s good! Louis’ really happy with what I figured out today,” she said excitedly, much like a kid who’d just been told by the teacher that she’d done a good job which, well, it wasn’t that far from the truth, really.

“What did you figure out?” Harry asked as he folded himself up so he could lean against the wall beside the closet, his toes tucked underneath Niall’s thigh.

“How to make it so that you can enter a building without being detected,” she explained, taking another bite of mac and cheese. “And it _should_ be undetectable, but on the off-chance that it _is_ detected, then the whole system would have to shut down completely so they can find it. Right now, finding and shutting ti down would take about twenty minutes, but I’m trying to see how to rig it so it’s about an hour instead,” she said excitedly, giving Harry a small grin.

“Well then,” he muttered, looking over at Gemma, who was staring at her incredulously.

“I feel like we’re in a movie or something. Wow,” she said, shaking her head as she leaned against the wall.

“Why?” Louis asked hesitantly, furrowing his eyebrows and looking from brother to sister. “Aren’t you supposed to be at your mum’s?” he asked hesitantly, his eyebrows raised as he waited for a response.

“Well, we had a bit of news,” Gemma explained, a slow smile on her face as she looked over at Harry. “Our mum is hosting the Christmas party this year. The big one, with all the important members of the government and of Centric coming,” she continued, fidgeting with the ends of her scarf.

“So?” Jade asked hesitantly, her head tilted a little to the side.

“We’ve been waiting for easy access to an event like this for _years_. We wanted to use it to make a statement, to show what’s happening outside of Centric, what’s happening inside the government ranks. Try and garner some support from them, basically,” Louis said, letting out a low whistle as he put down his bowl of mac and cheese.

Niall picked it up almost as soon as Louis put it down, shaking his head as he took a bite. “Christmas Eve is the same day as the shipment,” he muttered as Jade kept giving them a confused look, her face a look of realization after he said that.

“So you’d have to pick,” she whispered quietly, looking from Louis to Harry to Niall, all of whom nodded.

“We could split up, but that didn’t end well last time and that was for a smaller job,” Louis said, obviously on edge as he tried to think of something.

“We could put the Christmas party in the hands of a different team, couldn’t we?” Harry asked, his voice hopeful.

“Well, how do you get out of your mum’s party?” Louis asked Harry, and the curly-haired boy’s hopeful face dissipated.

“If we had to pick one, logistically, the Christmas party would be easiest to hand off to another team, especially with Jade’s shiny new discovery, but chances are Zayn has an invite too, so we’d have two of our team inside there,” Niall said, his tone serious as he stared down at the mac and cheese like it held all the answers.

“So what do we do? We have to figure it out in a week and …” Harry slowed his words down as he realized that their final decision might be to pick between the shipment and the Christmas party.

“I don’t know,” Louis’ tone was snippy, obviously upset with the idea that they might have to pick, because at the end of the day the One Direction Movement _was_ about getting the message of the government’s injustice out. Not about a shipment of _maybe_ miracle medicine. He stood quickly, his movements sharp and deliberate. “Get Zayn and Liam from the docks. We need a Team Zap meeting,” he said, his voice still clipped and serious as he brushed past everyone to head down to his bunk, his steps solid and firm as he disappeared down the stairs. 


End file.
